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Rhea sat on the couch wearing nothing but her boxers and an oversized t-shirt, her mug in hand as she stared outside the tall windows that stood in place of real walls. She watched the way the full moon glimmered its light against the ocean she called her backyard, feeling at peace as she brought the mug to her lips. Her eyes closed as she drank her tea, still hot but no longer boiling as it slid down her throat.
She and Garrus had been married officially for a little more than a year. Rhea Shepard-Vakarian… Even still she could hardly believe it. Nothing had really changed for them, they’d been living together for so long that it was just a matter of time before they finally tied the knot. The silver band on her left ring finger was just another little comfort.
Things were finally stable and steady. The relays were almost all repaired, the Citadel was pieced back together and transported back to its original position in the galaxy and all that remained was to finish the rebuilding. A future was finally a reality that she could have with Garrus. The galaxy was safe enough for them to start a family.
Garrus had been the first to bring it up years ago, back during the final battle against the Reapers on Earth. At that point it was just hope talking, the two saying anything that could get them to believe they weren’t going to die. Anderson had planted the seed in Rhea’s mind during their final conversation with each other, the man she admired most in the world telling her that she’d make a excellent mother. Now that she had peace, she started to believe him.
She and Garrus toyed with the idea, bringing it up in idle conversation every now and then. When they went grocery shopping it would come up. When they went to the market it would come up. When Wrex checked up on his favorite human he’d bring up the krogan kids that were alive because of her, and it would spark the idea between the war ravaged lovers once again.
Rhea would spend her time on the extra-net looking through various sites, adoption processes through various worlds and organizations. Garrus had been doing the same thing, and one day over dinner they both confessed the same thing.
They wanted a child.
It felt a bit odd to confess such a thing. When Rhea had joined the Alliance, she had received an implant that would prevent her from menstruating and make it impossible for her to get pregnant. It was practical at the time; she had bigger things to worry about than bleeding through her underarmor on a long mission or getting knocked up after a night of blowing off steam with some random officer. After she retired she’d kept it, given that she and Garrus could never reproduce naturally anyways. Now here she was, openly admitting her desire to have a child.
There was a lot to discuss after that. What species, what gender, how old, how young, how healthy, how sick… They took their time to really accept what they were getting into.
Rhea kept her eye on the extra-net, eventually stumbling upon an article about an organization that took responsibility for caring for many different children from all over the galaxy. A place for kids with nowhere else to go. Whose parents were pirates or prisoners or just unable to care for them.
They decided to take a visit.
It was a short trip on a transport shuttle from one newly repaired relay to the little colony settlement on a world that reminded Rhea a bit of her home. Warm enough for most races to be comfortable with a stable atmosphere that resisted radiation. They stepped off of the shuttle and were met by an asari, a matron who was responsible for the care of all the children. She lead the two hopefuls into an office where they had a long discussion regarding all of the things that Rhea and Garrus had talked about from the beginning. The two held each other’s hand, both of them nervous. There was always that bit of anxiety that screamed, “What if we fuck up?”
It was best to try and ignore it.
By the end of the session the two had decided that this would be the place where they first looked. Fortunately for them, they didn’t have to look far.
They were introduced to many children during their visit, and Rhea fell in love a little bit with each one. But then she met her daughter.
She was a tiny turian girl, barely a couple years old and very small. According to the matron, she’d been born with a rare sickness that had nearly killed her. Thanks to modern medicine she was much healthier and recovering easily, but until she was older she still needed more attention than most people could give, which was the reason why she was orphaned in the first place.
Fortunately for her, Rhea and Garrus weren’t most people. The little girl had bright green eyes almost the same shade as Rhea’s, with the slit pupils all female turians had, while her dark leather was nearly the color of Rhea’s black hair. Her plating was the same light tone as Garrus’, and the moment that Rhea saw her she instantly fell in love.
“Garrus,” she said, looking up at him with a smile. “I think we just found out what our turian-human baby looks like.”
“Certainly seems like it,” he said softly, his eyes transfixed on the girl who would become his daughter.
The next few months were spent learning about their new child, bonding with her, getting prepared for her arrival into their home, and filling out paperwork. Until finally, Navi Shepard-Vakarian was ready to come home.
Rhea looked to the hallway with the newly prepared room. The walls had been painted a light blue, orange bedding set up on the toddler sized bed that had a short guard rail to prevent Navi from falling out. A child monitor had been set up and connected to both Garrus and Rhea’s omni-tools to alert them immediately if anything was wrong. They’d also gone to extreme lengths to baby proof the house, from guarding the sockets to setting up extra locks on their makeshift armory to ensure that no one other than the two of them could ever get in.
Rhea got stiff as she heard footsteps behind her, her grip on her mug tightening a bit as she closed her eyes. Garrus was awake.
“Hey,” he started, his voice careful. He bent over the back of the couch, his arms folded a little as he looked over at her. “You okay?”
“Not really,” she admitted, knowing better than to make up excuses or lie to him.
“Can i join you?” he asked. Rhea answered by nodding and patting the couch cushion beside her. He sat down beside her, clad in nothing but his shorts. “Nervous?”
“Extremely,” Rhea confessed, letting out a heavy sigh and staring into her mug. “It just feels so surreal.”
“I know what you mean,” he agreed. “We’ve spent so many years taking lives, and now we’re responsible for one.”
Rhea was relieved to hear him put it in words. “Exactly! I just… I’m afraid. What if she doesn’t like me?”
“Ray, we’ve spent weeks at a time with the kid,” he said, getting closer and putting a warm hand on her forearm, squeezing reassuringly. “I’ve seen how she looks at you. She likes you.” She squirmed anyways, her anxiety getting to her. Garrus noticed and pulled her closer, careful not to slosh the still hot liquid in her mug. “Come on, Rhea. Let’s go to bed. We’ve got a long day ahead of us tomorrow.”
She let out a sigh and brought her tea to her mouth, finishing the rest of the warm drink in a few swallows. Her face scrunched up and she shook her head at the taste of her oversteeped tea. “I’ll be in bed in a moment, I’m gonna put this in the wash.”
Garrus accepted this answer, nuzzling her head before standing and crossing the space to their bedroom. Rhea stood and moved to the kitchen to rinse out her mug and put it in the washer. She paused for a moment, looking it over as though wanting to make sure every little detail was just right and perfect.
It’s going to be okay, she thought to herself, brushing back her dark hair from her face. A little bit of her courage regained, she made her way to the bed she shared with her husband.
They were up early the next morning in an effort to make it to the transport shuttle in a timely manner. Rhea wore a casual jeans and t-shirt outfit, her old N7 hoodie stretched out and loose about her shoulders while she fidgeted with a few of her marbles. Earth and Palaven and Thessia danced in her pocket as she used her biotics to turn the glass planets about. The marbles had been with her longer than any of her friends ever had, surviving her many deaths alongside her. And now they were there to help her calm down once again.
In a rare show of vulnerability, Garrus held Rhea close to him on the shuttle. The armrest was propped up to make them more comfortable as he rested his eyes and let himself nod off.
It wasn’t long before they were on the little colony world. The moment that they arrived at the safe house Rhea insisted that Navi be brought to her. The matron smiled at her eagerness, happy to oblige as she fetched the little girl for her. Navi’s bright face lit up at the sight of her new parents, smiling and giggling. Rhea held her close, giving her daughter a kiss on the cheek and letting Garrus do the first portion of paperwork while she sat on the floor and played little games with her. It was hard to believe that anything could possibly be wrong with a child so happy, the monitor bracelet she wore on her thin wrist the only indication that there was anything amiss about her. A green light blinked on Rhea’s omni-tool, the two bracelets connecting and reassuring the new mother that her daughter was healthy.
Once Garrus had finished his share of the work the two switched places, Rhea taking a seat before the desk to finish forms while the man she loved smiled and laughed with the ever cheerful Navi. Nothing was more heartwarming than the sight of her turians playing together, and it made her feel at peace as she signed her name in that office for the last time.
Navi clung to Garrus’ cowl as he picked up his little girl, still baby talking to her and making her smile. Rhea smiled up at them, reaching out and holding one of Navi’s hands.
“Come on, baby girl,” she said, smiling and close to tears with happiness. “Let’s take you home.”
“Home!” Navi repeated gleefully, just one of the many English words she’d learned since spending time with Rhea. She babbled something incoherent, Rhea’s translator not understanding it as real words but making her smile anyways.
They thanked the matron and parted ways, Navi still babbling to Garrus. He acted as though he understood what she was saying, happily playing along. She continued to be thoroughly amused by her parents as they took the shuttle back home, switching from lap to lap as they took turns entertaining her.
Months they’d spent trying to prepare themselves for Navi’s eventual arrival into her new home, and nothing could prepare Rhea for the way her new toddler took to the view from their living room. Navi ran off as soon as they brought her inside, pressing her palms against the window and staring out at the ocean.
Rhea and Garrus went to her side, not at all willing to let her out of their sight for the time being. Rhea sat on the floor by her, smiling as she watched how transfixed Navi was by the sunset on the waves beneath them.
“So pretty,” Navi said, her mouth open a little in awe.
“You like it?” Rhea asked.
“Yes!” she said immediately, making her parents laugh.
Garrus sat beside his girls, leaning back on an arm. “We’ll take you to the beach later,” he promised. “Do you want to eat now?”
Navi shook her head. “No,” she insisted, perfectly content with staying where she was. “It’s pretty.”
Rhea chuckled at this. “At least you tried.”
Garrus sighed. “She gets her stubbornness from you,” he joked, earning him a light shove from his wife. He chuckled as he looked at Navi with a fondness in his eyes. After spending the last few months traveling to and from the colony world just to see her, it was a relief to finally get to bring her home. They’d already become a family in that time, now it was just a matter of everyone getting acclimated to the final stretch of change.
That bit of anxiety still lingered inside them, still asking the same “What if I screw up?” questions. Screwing up was inevitable, just a fact of life. But that didn't mean they weren't going to do everything in their power to fix their mistakes. So long as Rhea and Garrus were her parents, Navi was in good hands.